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Behind the GLEE: Openly Gay Paris Barclay

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TweetSharebar TweetShareTweet National Public Radio aired an excellent piece on Paris Barclay. He’s the director behind the highly successful show GLEE. He’s not only an Emmy award winner, he’s also an excellent role model – living his truth as an openly gay, black married man with children. Listen here: NPR: Paris Barclay – A TV Insider […]

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National Public Radio aired an excellent piece on Paris Barclay. He’s the director behind the highly successful show GLEE. He’s not only an Emmy award winner, he’s also an excellent role model – living his truth as an openly gay, black married man with children.

He continues to enjoy success directing GLEE. But this is after he’s already enjoyed acclaim as a television director for ER and NYPD Blue. He’s also directed episodes of The West Wing, House, Lost, CSI and many more, collecting multiple Emmys and Peabody awards along the way. Barclay is the vice president — and first African-American officer — of the Directors Guild of America.

Paris is one of the few openly gay, black Hollywood decision makers. In the interview, he says he often hears that when trying to create gay, black characters:

” ‘Isn’t it enough that they’re just gay?’ or, ‘Isn’t it enough that they’re just black?’ ” he says, waving his hands dismissively as if he were such an executive at a meeting, “as if one cross was enough to bear.”

He sarcastically switches back to channeling mainstream Hollywood. ” ‘But if they’re gay and black … I just think that’s too overwhelming.’ ”

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